To show one workflow for setting up a Windows pc for compiling OpenCPN.

The pc used was a 'win-32-x86 machine', running Windows 8.1.

If you are running 'x64' you will need to download the 64 bit installers for some of the programs used here. This applies to:

• Git
• CMake
• 7Zip

The steps will follow the instructions here.

'Navigate' means using 'Windows Explorer' to find a folder or file.

'cd' or 'CD' is used in a Terminal window to 'change directory' (aka 'change folder')

• This assumes that you have accepted the suggested locations for installing the various programs.

https://www.visualstudio.com/en-us/news/releasenotes/vs2013-community-vs

• Download the installer.

• Install Visual Studio by a double-click on the '.exe'. You can disable all the optional features offered to save space.

Get the Git installation packages from https://git-for-windows.github.io/

• Install and let it register in the PATH environment variable
• The defaults for all the installation settings are fine except for just the following:
• On the Adjusting your PATH environment, select Run Git from the Windows Command Prompt.

• On the Choosing CR/LF behavior select Checkout as-is, Commit Unix LF.

• This is really important, the codebase uses Unix LF line endings and committing CR/LF makes the commits huge and hides their real content.

• Get the latest CMake installation packages from http://www.cmake.org

• The installer used is shown at the bottom of this screenshot.

• As part of the install choose this option:

• Install CMake and let it register the 'Path' environment variable

Get the latest 'Poedit' installation package from http://www.poedit.net

1. Install 'Poedit'.
2. Add 'C:\Program Files\Poedit\GettextTools\bin' to the PATH environment variable.

• Select 'System' and in the left column click 'Advanced System Settings'.

• On the Advanced tab, click on the 'Environment Variables' button.

• Under 'System Variables' find the 'Path' system variable. Press 'Edit'.

• In 'Variable value' add ';C:\Program Files\Poedit\GettextTools\bin' to the end of the list. (The semicolon is important!)

• Press 'OK' a number of times to save and exit.

Note: If you look in the 'C:\Program Files\Poedit\GettextTools\bin' folder you will see the file 'msgfmt.exe' which does the work of the program.

In case you want to create installation packages, install NSIS Unicode 2.46.5 from http://www.scratchpaper.com/

• Choose the Unicode version for 'win32-x86'. All the default settings can be accepted.

There is a “bug” in CMake, which only looks at “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\NSIS” for the installation location of NSIS

The Unicode version adds its registry key in “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\NSIS\Unicode”.

Some registry tweaking is needed.

• Open a 'Command Prompt' and type and run 'regedit'. This starts the 'Registry Editor'.

• Navigate to 'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\NSIS\Unicode'. Double-click on the 'Default' line.

Note: If you are running a 64-bit machine (x64) the key is located in 'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432node\NSIS\Unicode'

• Copy the value (The installation path of NSIS).
• Navigate to 'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\NSIS'.

Note: If you are running a 64-bit machine (x64) the location is 'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432node\NSIS'.

• Double-click on the 'Default' line and paste the install path into 'Value data'.

To make the installer package use proper language name translations, it is necessary to modify file 'C:\Program Files\NSIS\Unicode\Contrib\Language files\Norwegian.nsh' and change the line

!insertmacro LANGFILE "Norwegian" "Norwegian"

to

!insertmacro LANGFILE "Norwegian" "Norsk"

The 'C:\Program Files\NSIS\Unicode\Contrib\Language files\Norwegian.nsh' is edited.

Due to 'Security' you will need to add 'Write' permission to this file. Without this you will not be able to save the changes.

• With 'Explorer' navigate to 'C:\Program Files\NSIS\Unicode\Contrib\Language files\'.
• Right-click on the file 'Norwegian.nsh'.
• In 'Properties', 'Security' tab, press the 'Edit' button.

• Select 'Users' and tick all the 'Allow' boxes.
• The 'C:\Program Files\NSIS\Unicode\Contrib\Language files\Norwegian.nsh' can now be opened with 'WordPad' or 'Notepad' and the changes made and saved.

• Download the '3.0.2 release' as a 'zip' file from http://wxwidgets.org/downloads/
• Navigate to the folder where you downloaded the zip.
• Right-click on the file 'wxWidgets-3.0.2.zip' and select the menu option 'Extract All…'.

• Edit the folder for the Destination to read 'C:\wxWidgets-3.0.2' and press the 'Extract' button.

Note: This can be confusing!!! Even though we have installed 'Visual Studio Community 2013' when you search the 'Program Files' folder you will see 'Microsoft Visual Studio 12' but not 'Microsoft Visual Studio 13'. When you look at the installed 'Apps' you will see this:

• If you start the command prompt from 'Apps' DO NOT use the 'Microsoft Visual Studio 2012 - VS2012 x86 Native Tools Command Prompt'. An error message will appear:

• Instead … press the button 'Visual Studio Tools' under the heading 'Visual Studio 2013'.

This will open a folder of shortcuts.

You are in the folder 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\Common7\Tools\Shortcuts'

• Double-click the 'VS2013 x86 Native Tools Command Prompt' shortcut and a 'Terminal' window will appear

Note: On a 64 bit machine the prompt is 'VS2013 x64 Command Prompt'

Title is 'VS2013', the text reads 'Visual Studio 12'. You get the picture!!!

• cd to 'C:\wxWidgets-3.0.2\build\msw'.

An easy way to enter the correct folder (cd) for 'wxWidgets 3.0.2\build\msw' is to navigate to that folder with 'Explorer'.

• On the line showing the folders right-click and select 'Copy address as text'.
• In the Terminal window type 'cd ' (that is 'cd' plus a space'). Right-click and 'Paste'.

Build both release and debug configurations, which will be compatible with Windows XP.

RELEASE VERSION
nmake -f makefile.vc BUILD=release SHARED=1 CFLAGS=/D_USING_V120_SDK71_ CXXFLAGS=/D_USING_V120_SDK71_

DEBUG VERSION
nmake -f makefile.vc BUILD=debug SHARED=1 CFLAGS=/D_USING_V120_SDK71_ CXXFLAGS=/D_USING_V120_SDK71_

• For the 'Release' version copy the line starting 'nmake' into the Terminal window and press 'Enter'. Wait until the building has finished. This could take some time.
• Repeat the process for the 'Debug' version.

• Close the 'Terminal' window.

You will find that a number of files have been made in the folder 'c:\wxWidgets-3.0.2\lib\vc-dll'.

Some of the filenames start 'wxmsw30u' and others 'wxmsw30ud' corresponding to the 'Release' and 'Debug' versions.

This completes the preparations for building the OpenCPN program.

• Make a folder to store your OpenCPN source code files. In this guide I am going to call it 'Example' in the root folder, i.e. 'C:\Example\'.
• Start a 'Command Prompt' (Any prompt will work - just right-click on your Window icon) and select 'Command Prompt'. A Terminal window will appear.

• CD to the 'Example' folder. (Type 'cd C:\Example' and press 'Enter').

• Type this text into the Terminal window and press 'Enter'.

git clone git://github.com/OpenCPN/OpenCPN.git

• This will download the latest Beta code.

• The files/folders for building 'OpenCPN' will be placed in the folder 'C:\Example\OpenCPN'
• If you are happy to work with the Beta version source code … move on to the next section.

Note: If you want the source code for the latest stable release (4.4.0 at time of writing) you need to locate that source on GitHub.com:

https://github.com/OpenCPN/OpenCPN/tree/v4.4.0

• Press the 'Clone or download' button. DO NOT use the text for 'git clone' or you will get the Beta version. Instead …
• Select 'Download Zip' and get the zip file.

• Extract the files to the folder 'C:\Example'

• The files/folders for building 'OpenCPN' will be placed in the folder 'C:\Example\OpenCPN-4.4.0'
• These are the files that are going to be used for this workflow. This folder is renamed 'C:\Example\OpenCPN' to make the process steps read in the same way as for the files from 'git clone' (the Beta version).

Sorry, this needs another program - 7Zip.

• Get the installer from here.
• 7z files are compressed files making them smaller and faster to download. The '7Zip' program allows you to extract the original files.

• After the download double-click the '7z….exe' file to carry out the installation.
• You need to restart the computer.

'7z' files can now be opened and extracted with this program.

• Download OpenCPN_buildwin.7z

• Right-click on this file in 'Windows Explorer'. Select the option '7-Zip', 'Extract Files'.

• Select the folder 'C:\Example\OpenCPN. The files and folders from the 7z file will be placed under that directory

• Uncheck the box next to the text 'OpenCPN_buildwin'.

• Use the 'No to All' button to avoid overwriting files in the source.

• This will add extra files in the folder 'C:\Example\OpenCPN\buildwin' that are needed for the build.

• Start the VS2013 x86 Native Tools Command Prompt (A reminder is here)

[The command prompt shortcut is in the folder 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio 12.0\Common7\Tools\Shortcuts']

• Change Directory [cd] into 'C:\Example\OpenCPN'.
• Create a folder named “build” under this topmost source folder.

mkdir build

• cd to the “build” folder and then issue the cmake command shown.

cd build
cmake -T v120_xp ..

* Close the Terminal window.
* This has created the Visual Studio solution file 'OpenCPN.sln'.

• Open the '.sln' file with the program Visual Studio Community 2013 (you can double-click the file name)
• The program window should look like this:

• Select the project 'opencpn' as the 'Startup Project

• To avoid problems later please check the following options are set correctly
• Select 'Tools', 'Options'
• Check the settings are the same as shown in these two screenshots

• From the top of the window choose 'Build', 'Solution'.
• You will be making a 'Debug' version of the program.

• The build will take some time but the result should be like this:

• All is going well. The release version will now be made.
• Change the 'Dropdown' from 'Debug' to 'Release'.

• From the top of the window choose 'Build', 'Solution' again.

• Two new folders have appeared in 'C:\Example\OpenCPN\build', called 'Release' and 'Debug'.

This assumes that you have installed 'NSIS' (The guide was here).

• In Visual Studio Solution Explorer you will see a project called 'PACKAGE'.
• Right-click 'PACKAGE'. Choose 'Project Only', 'Build Only PACKAGE'

• Run this option.

• This will produce an installer 'setup.exe' in the folder 'C:\Example\OpenCPN\build\'

• Double click the setup .exe
• Accept the default settings
• The installation will complete with this page

• Run the finished program

OpenCPN (Version 4.4.0) and the four plugins included in the source files have been built successfully.